• Claude AI generates activist playbook at Docusign
• PAR shares are down 61% in past 12 months
• Six Flags divests seven parks

Must reads

5 March: The next frontier for Artificial Intelligence to disrupt could be activist investing.

This week brought what appears to be the first AI-driven activist campaign: Randian Capital sought the help of Claude AI to analyze Docusign and generate a letter to the board with ideas to unlock value.

While the idea is certainly amusing, the fact that Docusign was already on the radar screen as an activist target warrants a deeper look.

The e-signature company has been subject to takeover chatter over the years and last summer’s 19% selloff on earnings moved the name a little higher on the watchlist. Although 56% of shareholders supported Say‑on‑Pay at last year’s AGM, the unusually large 44% opposition still signalled significant shareholder frustration.

Things have been quiet since then as far as activism, though the stock price continues to tumble as one of the many victims of the AI-driven correction in software names. The company itself is leaning into the AI revolution, just recently unveiling a partnership with Anthropic – ironically the creator of Claude AI – to bring its intelligent agreement management platform to Anthropic’s Cowork.

As for Claude’s thoughts on Docusign, the 17-page writeup reads like a typical activist deck, highlighting margin improvement opportunities by way of cost cutting. The report suggests Docusign take a page out of Block’s playbook, noting the company’s massive 40% workforce reduction announced last month.

Claude also flagged Docusign’s current 8.6x EV/FCF multiple as well below peers, suggesting improved margins could re-rate the stock above 12x EV/FCF, and ended with the customary call for increased buybacks and improved governance.

While Claude’s letter to the board goes a little off the rails about moral justification, the overall idea is pretty on par with typical activist demands.

The question now is whether an activist decides to pick up the torch Claude lit. The latest round of 13F filings didn’t show much activist movement in Docusign, but the stock has spent most of this year making new lows, now down 32% YTD.

The board nomination deadline passed at the end of last week, so it’s unclear if there was any action already, however, we wonder if the latest selloff has finally attracted an activist. Could this AI report help tip any funds that may have been on the fence?

The company’s upcoming 17 March 4Q26 earnings report will certainly be interesting.

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5 March: Voss Capital has had enough of the SaaSpocalypse; urging restaurant platform PAR Technology to try and find a take-private deal in a letter yesterday.

The fund alludes to the recent sell-off of software companies. The advent of AI platforms has hurt the growth-story of software-as-a-service firms like Salesforce and ServiceNow. The IGV Software Index is down 26% from its late-September highs and PAR shares are down 61% in the past six months.

Voss, which has a 13.2% stake, said that PAR’s board should explore a full range of strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value, pointing to recent private equity and strategic acquisitions of peer companies in the restaurant technology space.

The closest precedent deal is Thoma Bravo’s takeover of Olo in July of last year, coming in at an enterprise value of about USD 1.7bn and a forward revenue multiple of roughly 4.7x. That’s significantly ahead of where PAR is currently trading, sitting at about 2.1x 2026 consensus sales. A deal at the Olo multiple would work out to about USD 50 per share, a massive premium from where shares closed Wednesday at USD 18.67.

A look at some of other recently acquired names in the PAR peer group from its last proxy filing show a lower multiple: Deals for Everbridge, E2open and PROS Holdings were struck around 3.5x forward sales, with the lower end of that range working out to about USD 34 per PAR share and still a material premium to where it’s currently trading.

Of course, what Voss is saying is true. The market is penalizing software companies and PAR may be better off away from the public eye as it looks to scale. That said, investors should be clear-eyed about the kind of multiple PAR could fetch in a sale right now. The SaaS takeover premiums of 2025 are nowhere to be found in 2026, leaving us to wonder if a near-term sale is really in PAR’s best interest.

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5 March: Six Flags Entertainment has decided to trim a few flags, striking an agreement to sell seven of its parks.

The theme park operator, currently struggling to turn things around under a heavy debt load, reached a deal to sell the parks to EPR Properties for USD 331m in cash.

Parting ways with those seven will leave the company with 34 amusement and water parks, which CEO John Reilly has said he believes offers the greatest long-term upside.

For 2025, the seven parks generated USD 260m in net revenue and USD 45m in adjusted EBITDA. That works out to an adjusted EBITDA margin of just over 17%. Given Six Flags posted a total adjusted EBITDA margin of 25.5% for 2025, divesting the parks looks to provide a nice bump to margins.

The company plans to use cash proceeds from the sale to pay down debt. The transaction is expected to close in 1Q26 or beginning of 2Q26.

Six Flags is home to several activists, with Dendur Capital and Sachem Head Capital already striking cooperation agreements. We are right in the middle of the board nomination window so we may soon find out if any other funds plan to make some noise. The deadline to nominate directors is 27 March.

Live activist situations

Activist announcements

4 March: Cosmic Vision Innovations disclosed in a 13D filing a 5.66% stake in Mega Matrix. Cosmic Vision did not disclose any immediate plans or proposals, but stated that it may engage in discussions with management, the board of directors, shareholders, or other parties regarding capital structure or strategic direction.

4 March: Saba Capital Management disclosed in a 13D filing a 5.13% stake in Korea Fund. Saba did not disclose any immediate plans or proposals, but stated that it may engage in discussions with management, the board of directors, other shareholders of the company and other relevant parties.

4 March: Voss Capital announced that it has issued a letter to the board of directors of Xponential Fitness. Voss urged the company’s board to immediately explore strategic alternatives.

On the same day, Voss sent a letter to Euronet Worldwide’s board. Voss also called for the exploration of strategic alternatives at Euronet Worldwide.

Voss has a 19.3% stake in Xponential, and a 4.2% stake in Euronet Worldwide.

4 March: Bradley Radoff and Michael Torok announced that they have issued a letter to Seer’s independent directors, Meeta Gulyani and Nicolas Roelofs. Radoff and Torok expressed their concerns with Seer’s board of directors and Board Chair and CEO Omid Farokhzad. Radoff and Torok urged the board to immediately publicly announce a sale process.

Radoff and Torok own an approximately 7.6% stake in Seer.

Company announcements

5 March: Victoria’s Secret announced that it has initiated a strategic review of DailyLook, a non-core asset within VS&Co. The company said that it was continuing to assess the Adore Me business and explore opportunities to optimize it within the broader portfolio. Victoria’s Secret also reported financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year of 2025.

BBRC International, which owns a 12.9% stake in Victoria’s Secret, issued a letter to the company in November 2025, calling for, among other things, the removal of Board Chair Donna James. Barington Capital holds a 0.5% stake in Victoria’s Secret.

4 March: Farmer Brothers announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement in which Royal Cup Coffee & Tea would acquire all outstanding shares of its stock for USD 1.29 per share in an all-cash transaction. The company said that the transaction was expected to close in its fiscal fourth quarter ending 30 June.

22NW, which holds an 8.9% stake in Farmer Brothers, entered into a letter agreement with the company in August 2024. JCP Investment Management owns a 4.5% stake in Farmer Brothers.

4 March: RB Global announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Big Iron Auction Company, a scaled, agriculture-focused online marketplace. The company said that the transaction was expected to be completed in the 2H26, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

Janus Henderson Group owns a 2.19% stake in RB Global.

4 March: Jack in the Box disclosed the final voting results of its AGM held on 27 February. All of the company’s director nominees were elected to the board, however, David Goebel received a high number of votes against him. All other proposals were also approved at the meeting.

Biglari Capital, which owns a 9.86% stake in Jack in the Box, had been urging shareholders to vote against the election of Goebel at the AGM.

4 March: MarineMax announced that its board of directors has approved a new stock repurchase plan. Under the new plan, the company said it was authorized to repurchase up to USD 100m of its common stock beginning on 4 March through March 2028.

Donerail Group, which has an over 4% stake in MarineMax, had submitted a proposal in January to acquire the company for USD 35 per share, and announced its intention to vote against Brett McGill at the 2026 AGM. In February, Levin Capital Strategies called on MarineMax’s board to initiate a strategic review.

4 March: Wendy’s announced the finalization of two new franchise agreements that would add more than 60 new Wendy’s restaurants in Mexico in the coming years. The company said that it has entered into a franchise agreement with AJ Group to develop 50 new Wendy’s restaurants in Mexico City and the states of Mexico, Hidalgo and Morelos. Wendy’s has also entered into a franchise agreement with WS Pacific to develop 12 new Wendy’s restaurants across the states of Sinaloa and Durango.

Trian Fund Management, which owns a 16.33% stake in Wendy’s, disclosed in an amended 13D that it was targeting potential strategic transactions, initiatives to generate or enhance shareholder value.